{"id":108164,"date":"2026-09-18T13:10:29","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T17:10:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/?p=108164"},"modified":"2026-10-08T16:21:02","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T20:21:02","slug":"like-a-virgin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/2026\/09\/like-a-virgin\/","title":{"rendered":"Like A Virgin"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\">[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.prod.r53.tablethotels.com\/media\/ecs\/global\/magazine\/story-images\/20260919-like-a-virgin\/safari-DSCN3197-flipped.jpg\" alt=\"Safari\" width=\"970\" height=\"auto\" \/><\/p>\n<h4>There&#8217;s a lot you&#8217;ll have to get used to on your first African safari, but if you&#8217;re okay with no longer being atop the food chain, you&#8217;ll be reminded how exhilarating it is to be alive.<\/h4>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator style=&#8221;dashed&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/12&#8243;]<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:10px;\"><\/aside><a class=\"image_link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/tag\/thaakiera-ackerdien\/\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"203\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Thaakiera-headshot-DA-copy.png\" class=\"thb_image  left  retina_size attachment-full\" alt=\"\" title=\"Thaakiera headshot DA copy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Thaakiera-headshot-DA-copy.png 200w, https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Thaakiera-headshot-DA-copy-132x134.png 132w, https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Thaakiera-headshot-DA-copy-90x90.png 90w, https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Thaakiera-headshot-DA-copy-20x20.png 20w, https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Thaakiera-headshot-DA-copy-95x96.png 95w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:10px;\"><\/aside>[\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;11\/12&#8243;]<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:10px;\"><\/aside>[vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1720455088433{background-color: #ffffff !important;}&#8221;]\n<p style=\"font-size: 14px;\"><strong>By <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/magazine\/en\/tag\/thaakiera-ackerdien\/\">Thaakiera Ackerdien<\/a><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Travel Writer, Fireplace Contributor<\/em><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text]<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:10px;\"><\/aside>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator style=&#8221;dashed&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;]<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:40px;\"><\/aside>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]\n<p style=\"font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px;\"><strong>Part One: <em>The Nighttime Theater<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>My first night in the Zambezi bush was eye-opening.<\/p>\n<p>I laid rigid in the dark, sheets clutched up to my ears, listening to the sway of leaves and the odd drop of a branch hitting the roof of my tent. Then, a shuffle in the grass and heavy footsteps, followed by wet, tearing crunches, like someone repeatedly stepping on a head of lettuce. The sound of gulping crunches grew closer and closer until it was right above my head, only a thin layer of canvas protecting me.<\/p>\n<p>In the dark, illuminated just by the moon, the massive silhouette of a hippo appeared just beyond the bug screen of my tent. Given the camp&#8217;s proximity to the river, the encounter was not surprising \u2014 but it was still a jarring bit of nighttime theater. Needless to say, I didn&#8217;t get much sleep. After that, Every branch that cracked sounded like a predator testing the perimeter of my tent. The night was filled with a chaotic, primal soundtrack: the deep guttural grunting of hippos in the water, the eerie whoop and cackle of hyenas, and, somewhere far too close, the low, reverberating roar of a lion.<\/p>\n<p>It was a strange position to find myself in. By trade, I&#8217;m a travel writer specializing in African safaris. I know the movement of the Great Migration. I know the prime months for traversing the Okavango Delta. I know the finest camps and lodges. I know it all by heart \u2014 from my safe, air-conditioned offices in Cape Town.<\/p>\n<p>So, when the opportunity arose to step out from behind the keyboard and embark on a multi-day expedition across two massive conservation areas in Zambia and Zimbabwe, I said yes before I could even talk myself out of it. I had been specifically selected for my lack of experience, an angle they thought might ease the nerves of potential travelers. If I could do it, so could anybody.<\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s what to expect when you trade civilization for the bush.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.prod.r53.tablethotels.com\/media\/ecs\/global\/magazine\/story-images\/20260919-like-a-virgin\/safari-DSCN3139.jpg\" alt=\"Safari\" width=\"970\" height=\"auto\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.prod.r53.tablethotels.com\/media\/ecs\/global\/magazine\/story-images\/20260919-like-a-virgin\/safari-DSCN3283.jpg\" alt=\"Safari\" width=\"970\" height=\"auto\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.prod.r53.tablethotels.com\/media\/ecs\/global\/magazine\/story-images\/20260919-like-a-virgin\/safari-IMG_1713.jpg\" alt=\"Safari\" width=\"970\" height=\"auto\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px;\"><strong>Part Two: <em>You&#8217;re No Longer the Top of the Food Chain<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The transition from modern life to wilderness happens fast. One minute you&#8217;re navigating airport security, the next you&#8217;re bouncing along a dusty track in the back of an open-air safari vehicle, phone signal gone, notifications gone, nothing left to check. For a few uneasy hours I kept reaching for my pocket out of habit, before realizing there was nothing there to reach for \u2014 no inbox, no calls or texts, no social media, nothing but tires on gravel and, eventually, the very loud silence of the bush. It was the fastest I have ever gone from anxious to still.<\/p>\n<p>Moving through the savannah is a lesson in humility. You quickly realize that humans are not in charge. Every rustle in the grass, every bird cry, and every ripple in the water belongs to something older, stronger, and infinitely better adapted than you are. And you can&#8217;t always retreat to the relative safety of a 4&#215;4, as I found out on a walking safari at Camp Mana in Zimbabwe\u2019s stunning Mana Pools National Park.<\/p>\n<p>Arising at 5:30 AM, I set off into the bush with my guide, Steve. Leaving my tent, I was greeted by the warmth of the rising sun that painted the browning grass in careful shades of gold. Steve walked ahead, carrying a massive rifle purely as a precaution.<\/p>\n<p>Suddenly, he froze. He had found a fresh lion print in the dry riverbed. He ushered the rest of us to wait under a nearby fig tree while he scouted the tracks, trying to figure out which direction the lion was heading.<\/p>\n<p>Then it happened. A low, piercing roar vibrated right through the air, sounding dangerously close. Much to my anxious delight, we moved towards the sound. My adrenaline began to surge and my heart pounded. Pushing through the bush, we saw him, a massive male lion tucked beneath a large shrub, his magnificent tawny mane glistening brilliantly in the early morning sun. He flicked his tail, seemingly oblivious to our presence, and calmly stood up and walked away.<\/p>\n<p>Although this encounter was spectacular, nothing prepares you for your first encounter with wild elephants. They are hypnotic. They move with impossible, ghostly quiet despite their colossal size. When they look at you, there is a terrifying, beautiful calculation behind those amber eyes. They aren\u2019t aggressive; they are simply aware, and you are merely a visitor in their home.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.prod.r53.tablethotels.com\/media\/ecs\/global\/magazine\/story-images\/20260919-like-a-virgin\/safari-DSCN3280.jpg\" alt=\"Safari\" width=\"970\" height=\"auto\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.prod.r53.tablethotels.com\/media\/ecs\/global\/email\/newsletter-img\/safari-DSCN3071.jpg\" alt=\"Safari\" width=\"970\" height=\"auto\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.prod.r53.tablethotels.com\/media\/ecs\/global\/magazine\/story-images\/20260919-like-a-virgin\/safari-IMG_1809.jpg\" alt=\"Safari\" width=\"970\" height=\"auto\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px;\"><strong>Part Three: <em>The Verdict<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The luxury of a safari camp often lies in its deceptive simplicity. You eat restaurant-quality meals under a night sky so free of light pollution that the Milky Way shines with startling brightness, illuminating an otherwise pitch-black bush. Conversation runs late. Someone tells a story about a leopard they saw ten years ago on this same stretch of river. You laugh more than you expect to, given how far you are from anything familiar.<\/p>\n<p>Then you&#8217;re escorted back to your tent, and the sounds start again \u2014 the same shuffle in the grass, the same wet crunch just beyond the canvas. Except this time, lying rigid in the dark, I found myself grinning instead of gripping the sheets. Somewhere between that first jarring hippo and this one, the fear had quietly turned into something closer to belonging.<\/p>\n<p>I left the office as a burnt-out, anxious writer. From the bush, I returned completely reset. A safari doesn\u2019t care about your physical limitations, your resume, or your everyday worries.<\/p>\n<p>By stripping away the noise of modern life and confronting you with the grand, untamed theater of the natural world, it does something far greater than give you a vacation. It restores your sense of wonder and reminds you just how exhilarating it is to be alive.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n<div style=\"height:1px;border-top:3px double #ccc;margin-top:30px;margin-bottom:60px;display:block;clear:both\"><\/div>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There&#8217;s a lot you&#8217;ll have to get used to on your first African safari, but if you&#8217;re okay with no longer being atop the food chain, you&#8217;ll be reminded how exhilarating it is to be alive.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":78,"featured_media":108191,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_ppma_block_editor_authors":""},"categories":[3497],"tags":[3700,3677,3351,3897],"thb-sponsors":[],"ppma_author":[3921],"class_list":["post-108164","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel-life","tag-africa","tag-safari","tag-south-africa","tag-thaakiera-ackerdien"],"acf":{"new_subtitle":"What To Expect From Your First Safari","property_id":null},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What To Expect From Your First Safari \u2014 by Tablet Hotels<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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